McLaren Vale

We dedicated today to exploring McLaren Vale wine region and food.  After breakfast, we made the short drive into the hills surrounding Adelaide to visit a few wineries.

Our first stop was Samuels Gorge, a very pretty winery with a nice tasting room.


Our next stop was more about the crazy architecture and art than the wine, although they make excellent wine also.  D'Arenberg stands out on the horizen, both because of its perch on top of a hill but also because of 'The Cube' that is it's distinguishing feature.  Also scattered around the grounds are interesting pieces of art.  We didn't actually taste the wine here because we had already had a bottle with dinner one night.  Still worth a peek. 




For lunch, we went to a lovely  cliffside restaurant, Star of Greece, so named for the ship that wrecked nearby not the type of food served.  Intimate, the windows open up onto the ocean which was quite rough today due to the high winds.  The seafood forward meal was delicious as was our wine choice.

Back on the wine trail, we hit a couple of others before returning to Adelaide.  Our favorite, Alpha box & Dice, doesn't grow grapes but makes creations from other's harvest.  It's a very hipster kind of place with the winemakers each taking a turn at hosting the tasting room.  I highly recommend a stop.

One other stop was at Battle of Bosworth.  Their organic wines offerings even include one with no preservatives.  It was a nice end to the day.

Tomorrow: A focus on Gin

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